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published during the Civil War. These newspapers contain a wealth of
eye-witness illustrations and news reports. This collection represents
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THE
THREE WISHES.

THE eastern origin of this tale
seems evident; had it been originally composed in a northern land, it is
probable that the king would have been represented as dethroned by means of
bribes obtained from his own treasury.

There was once a wise emperor who
made a law, that to every stranger who came to his court a fried fish should be
served. The servants were directed to take notice, if, when the stranger had
eaten the fish to the bone on one side, he turned it over and began on the other
side. If he did, he was to be immediately seized, and on the third day
thereafter he was to he put to death. But, by a great stretch of imperial
clemency, the culprit was permitted to utter one wish each day, which the
emperor pledged himself to grant, provided it was not to spare his life. Many
had already perished in consequence of this edict, when one day, a count and his
young

the Emperor of Morocco in these
days ; and on the second day of his imprisonment the young man demanded the
king's treasures. If his first demand was a bold one, the second was not less so
; still, an emperor's word is sacred, and having made the promise, he was forced
to keep it ; and the treasures of gold and silver and jewels were placed at the
prisoner's disposal. On getting possession of them, he distributed them
profusely among the courtiers, and soon he had made a host of friends by his
liberality.

The emperor began now to feel
exceedingly uncomfortable. Unable to sleep, he rose early on the third morning
and went, with fear in his heart, to the prison to hear what the third wish was
to be.

"Now," said he to his prisoner, "
tell me what your third demand is, that it may be granted at once, and you may
be hung out of hand, for I am tired of your demands."

" Sire," answered his prisoner,
"I have but one more favor to request of your majesty, which, when

mon. If nobody saw the offense
committed, the count can not be guilty, and my husband is innocent."

The emperor frowned, and
forthwith the courtiers began to murmur ; then he smiled, and immediately their
visages became radiant.

"Let it be so," said his majesty
; " let him live, though I have put many a man to death for a lighter offense
than his. But if he is not hung, he is married. Justice has been done."

THE
PRESIDENT'S INAUGURAL.

THE
first inauguration of
President LINCOLN was under circumstances of most intense interest. The people
were wrought up to a high pitch of expectation. They were eager with
apprehension, which was partially relieved by the eagerness of the hope that
balanced with their fear. The apprehension

Republic was invading certain
States because it would no longer suffer their invasion on its own most sacred
immunities.

For two reasons the popular
expectation centred upon Mr. LINCOLN. His election was in some sort the pretext
of the revolutionists, and his attitude toward the revolution must now represent
the decision of the people. Up to the time of his inauguration Mr. LINCOLN was
very reticent. But in his inaugural address his voice was clear and decided. The
peculiar feature of the address was its nationality. Up to that moment the
national consciousness of our people had found little expression of itself. Now
we were one people, with a common boundary which we determined should be as
inviolable by , traitors as by a foreign enemy.

Mr. LINCOLN'S second inaugural
address was delivered under for different circumstances from the first. In the
one case the address was the principal thing. March 4, 1861, the people waited
upon Mr.

VISIT TO FORT SUMTER BY GENERAL
GILLMORE AND STAFF, FEBRUARY 21, 1865.—SKETCHED BY STANLEY FOX.—[SEE PAGE 172.]

son presented themselves at
court. The fish was served as usual, and when the count had removed all the fish
from one side, he turned it over, and was about to commence on the other, when
he was suddenly seized and thrown into prison, and was told of his approaching
doom. Sorrow stricken, the count's young son besought the emperor to allow him
to die in the room of his father ; a favor which the monarch was pleased to
accord him. The count was accordingly released from prison, and his son was
thrown into his cell in his stead. As soon as this had been done, the young man
said to his jailers : " You know I have the right to make three demands before I
die ; go and tell the emperor to send me his daughter, and a priest to marry
us." This first demand was not much to the emperor's taste, nevertheless he felt
bound to keep his word, and he therefore complied with the request, to which the
princess had no kind of objection. This occurred in the times when kings kept
their treasures in a cave, or in a tower set apart for the purpose, like

you have granted, I shall die
content. It is merely that you will cause the eyes of those who saw my father
turn the fish over to be put out."

Very good," replied the emperor,
" your demand is but natural, and springs from a good heart. Let the chamberlain
be seized," he continued, turning to his guards.

" I, Sire !" cried the
chamberlain ; " I did not see any thing it was the steward."

"Let the steward be seized then,"
said the king. But the steward protested with tears in his eyes, that he had not
witnessed any thing of what had been reported, and said it was the butler. The
butler declared that he had seen nothing of the matter, and that it must have
been the valets. But they protested that they were utterly ignorant of what had
been charged against the count in short, it turned out that nobody could be
found who had seen the count commit the offense, upon which the princess said :

" I appeal to you, my father, as
to another Solo-

related to the revolutionary
excitement which was already culminating in the gulf States the hope wavered
toward some deep resource of statesmanship, as yet unknown, which might master
the storm and save the Republic. In the election of
Mr. LINCOLN, the people,
though they issued no writ of ejectment against slavery in States, yet forbade
its extension over the national territory. By his election the Government became
national without doing the least violence to the reserved immunities of the
States ; it became national instead of sectional. But the necessity had already
long existed for a sectional government in order to the perpetuation of slavery.
A national creed was, therefore, unacceptable to the South. She required that
every issue in which all the people were interested should be decided in the
interest of a part, and that part a minority. Because in a single instance the
people had decided otherwise a revolution of terrible import was growing rapidly
toward its crisis. And the watch word of the revolutionists was this paradox :
That the

LINCOLN'S words; March 4, 1865,
the solemn ceremonies of inauguration were inseparable from an expression of
triumph it was the occasion itself and the spectacle which impressed the people.
The most that was required of the second inaugural address was that it should
befit the occasion. It was needless to reiterate statements already given as to
the policy to be pursued in the conduct of the war, or as to the conditions
necessary to peace. The President's views on these matters are well known to the
people, and they are the views of the people. In fact, President LINCOLN, in
this second address, simply alludes briefly to the change of situation since his
first inauguration, only dwelling for a moment upon the relation of slavery to
the war, and then proceeds to take upon himself anew the vow of fidelity to the
Constitution of the United States. The ceremony was an impressive one. The most
hopeful thought connected with this event is that its next repetition will find
us a united and happy people.

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